It’s time for some spring cleaning! However, as you move the recliner away from the wall to vacuum, you notice fine sawdust right next to the baseboard.
Upon further investigation, you suddenly see a few large black ants crawling on the carpet. Near the windowsill, you find wings that have been shed... uh oh.
You think it may be carpenter ants, which are common in the Okanagan region.
Not sure what to do next? Keep reading to learn more.
Basic Info About Identifying Carpenter Ants
Black carpenter ants are very large compared to other ants ranging in size from 6 to 25mm.
Carpenter ants, like bees, create colonies that are ruled by a queen. The queen ant can lay over 700 eggs per day. That’s millions of new ants over the queen’s lifetime!
Carpenter ants will establish the main colony and sub-colonies. It takes five years for the main colony to mature, then swarmer ants are sent out to set up a helper colony.
The swarmer ants find a good spot, like your home, rip off their wings and begin a sub-colony. The sub-colony is dependent upon the main colony and will travel back and forth at night to help out.
Carpenter ants shelter in wood, excavating living spaces. Dead insects and shredded wood fragments are removed. Cone-shaped piles of debris create an anthill indicating the carpenter ant nest.
Carpenter ants have strong jaws, but rarely bite unless provokes.
The Signs of an Infestation
Carpenter ants can have a colony of workers living in the walls of your home. Rather than eating wood, carpenter ants damage the structure by chewing tunnels through the wood.
Over time the carpenter ants will make hollow areas in the wood to use as nests. Pieces of cleaned hollowed-out wood indicate an ant infestation.
Ants living in the wood of your home will be active at night and you may notice rustling noises.
Winged black carpenter ants creeping out from hidden crevices or shed wings of swarmer carpenter ants could indicate a sub-colony in your home.
Tips to Prevent an Infestation
Carpenter ants search for moist wood. It is important to keep firewood away from your home.
Another attractant is standing water near your foundation. Also, be aware of decorative bark, and wood retaining walls.
Other considerations:
Remove leaks
Screen windows
Seal cracks
Clean gutters
Trim trees
Seal food containers
Controlling a Carpenter Ant Invasion
Carpenter ants are silent invaders that weaken the structural integrity of your home. These silent invaders can create extensive damage.
This is not a problem to conquer on your own. A pest management professional experienced in finding the nests and eradicating the threat to your home will be your most suitable option.
We are a family-run business that uses integrated pest management, and we have an environmentally responsible process minimizing the impact on your family and pets.
Contact Bugman Pest Control Services today, offering professional ant exterminators in Kelowna, Penticton, Vernon and throughout the Okanagan.